[PICTURES/VIDEOS] What now for Babar Azam?

[mominsaigol]

Babar is going through the worst patch of his life. He needs some rest so that he can clear his mind.

It's not a patch bhai, Steve smith was dropped from Australia after it was clear he's done in whiteball same qith root in 2023.

As for kohli, The thing is kohli was still performing in 2022 with atg innings against afghanistan and pakistan in t20 and top scoring in odi in 2023 wc, he only had a miserable test outing for 3 years and had a horrible 2021 in all formats, However

Kohli didn't have any fitness or ego issues, he was still the same old same old, so you knew that his patch is just lack of confidence and someone as mentally resilient as him will bounce back after a rest since he'll have enough time to cool off.

Babar's fitness from 2015-2016 to 2024 is night and day, and his ego is through the roof. Fans asking the so called King to Improve fitness, improve SR and win games is not an unreasonable request so idkw he's reacting as if we're asking to sell both his kidneys on Ebay?

If Yousaf could learn the art of doing all 3 things, then so should bobby. Infact even yousaf and inzi were scrutinised into oblivion for vanishing in icc events and neither of these 2 reacted or complained.

 

[Savak]

Give him time. He isn't going to be a great player, but he is still a good batsman.

8 years isn't long enough? He is being made to look like a novice tail ender by Bangladesh of all teams. He should be sent back to domestic cricket and be required to earn his place back.

 

[Thanos]

What is not right however is that you give players free rides and promotions and dosti yaari crew.

It's one thing to not be performing but if coaches are complaining that Babar is not complying with their batting coaches, and his fitness is decreasing then he needs to be booted.

I'd be happy to keep Babar if his attitude was correct but it isn't. He's displaying Umar Akmal levels of ego atm

Agree to this one.
If Babar thinks he is bigger than the game itself than needs to be reminded of his place.
If BCCI can show door to an ODI double centurion, PCB too can.

 

[Mamoon]

Cherry picked stats don't fool me.

You can celebrate his Zimbabawe, Nepal and Uganda hundreds for all I care.

He remains average to me.

Name his replacement.

 

[Mamoon]

Not really — your premise seems to be that because Babar is potentially Pakistan’s current finest batsman (an accolade actually I would also bestow upon him) he should be immune from being dropped.


No player, how great, should feel (or be treated) as if their performances don’t matter and that it will eventually turn itself around. This breeds complacency — “I don’t need to worry, they’ll never drop me, after all I’m the great ABC”.
They then rest on their past laurels and the adulation of their fans.

You refer to Babar 2016-21. We are now in 2024.
Almost two years since a test 50, and in his last 15 innings he has an average of 20 with zero 50s (let alone any centuries).
Not sure he can even see the laurels to be able to rest on them….

This seems to be particularly prevalent in the subcontinent where certain senior players seem to behave (and be treated) like demigods above criticism.

Name your Pakistan XI for the next Test series.

 

[Hikaru]

PCB should treat him to be in what he is, a bang average batsman. Give him a boot if there's better ones available, if not, you have no other choice but to stick with him.

 

[mominsaigol]

Shan against Bangladesh this series avg 26 scored one 50

Babar averaged 16, zero 50's.

Abdullah averages 10.5 zero 50's.

Saim avg 33 2 50's.

Clown top order

No 1, 2, 3 and 4 are all trash

 

[RainStopsPlay]

A disgraceful fall of a great batter.

He is nowhere near his class when he burst into the scene or when the had the 2019-2022 purple patch. He is pretty mediocre these days. Failed all the big tests which would have propelled him forward.

It is time that team management look ahead and leave Babar. I'm glad they finally had their senses and removed him from Test captaincy. Hope they do the same with ODIs and T20Is as well.

Babar only has himself to blame. He should not have taken the captaincy 2nd time. He was effectively made the gOaT and he put the knife onto himself. He sacrificed himself for his ego but also hurt Shaheen.

He will be remembered along the likes of Umar Akmal and Ahmed Shehzad of what could have they been if they only focused on their performance and remained outside of politics.

Are you the real Mamoon?

 

[Josh]

https://twitter.com/x/status/600522464423243776

 

[mominsaigol]

Are you the real Mamoon?

He's the Polar opposite. The Mamoon we didn't deserve but the one that we needed

 

[Buffet]

Babar is not really worse than many other batsmen in Pakistan. He could score some runs if you give him flat roads in home.

No need to drop him and no need to hype him.

 

[Cover Drive Six]

https://twitter.com/x/status/600522464423243776

This is gold.
Is that real? Lol, is Babr trolling, or does he really not know how to spell Zimbabwe?
This isn’t the first or the last time, he always repeats this mistake. Recently, he edited a post about Anderson's retirement.
He seems illiterate and uneducated. He should at least get some help from an English teacher.

 

[Asif321]

Tell Naqvi to direct a movie for him called “ The King “

 

[Asif321]

This is gold.
Is that real? Lol, is Babr trolling, or does he really not know how to spell Zimbabwe?
This isn’t the first or the last time, he always repeats this mistake. Recently, he edited a post about Anderson's retirement.
He seems illiterate and uneducated. He should at least get some help from an English teacher.

Pakistani cricketers do great to embarrass themselves. Who never have urge to learn . Just want to eat kebab and biryani . Show off their cars

 

[mominsaigol]

This is gold.
Is that real? Lol, is Babr trolling, or does he really not know how to spell Zimbabwe?
This isn’t the first or the last time, he always repeats this mistake. Recently, he edited a post about Anderson's retirement.
He seems illiterate and uneducated. He should at least get some help from an English teacher.

He can barely speak English bro? Lol.

I've met bobby irl amoung a few cricketers. Babar irl is a nice guy, and he is well mannered.

But dude can't really communicate in English at all.

 

[Josh]

He can barely speak English bro? Lol.

I've met bobby irl amoung a few cricketers. Babar irl is a nice guy, and he is well mannered.

But dude can't really communicate in English at all.

Social media managers do more harm than good. Babar if he was handling social media all by himself, he would have eventually learnt and got better in communication

 

[Dhakar Pola]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1830651078855258192

Make flat pitches, our bowlers took wickets on them apparently

First test pitch was quite flat. We scored 550+

 

[mominsaigol]

Social media managers do more harm than good. Babar if he was handling social media all by himself, he would have eventually learnt and got better in communication

I don't really mind that he can't speak it.

Sarfi is even worse lol. Babar personality wise isn't bad, it's just dude has a very very stubborn ego and is unwilling to change.

His lack of fitness has clearly impacted him, even his reactions are slower now

 

[Josh]

I don't really mind that he can't speak it.

Sarfi is even worse lol. Babar personality wise isn't bad, it's just dude has a very very stubborn ego and is unwilling to change.

His lack of fitness has clearly impacted him, even his reactions are slower now

This will be reason for not reaching his potential. He still has time by his side though

 

[mominsaigol]

This will be reason for not reaching his potential. He still has time by his side though

The issue Is also that ramiz fed his ego.

Babar isn't as bad as people claimed him to be. Yes his supporters claiming he's the best pakistani batter ever and pakiatan's answer to kohli was annoying cause Babar is just a bootleg version of Yousaf, one with a crappy technique, footwork, and lacks the ability to win games.

But even still bro, Scoring 3 back to back centuries 2x even if it's a weak bowling attack of wi and Sri lanka that too in overseas conditons is extremely impressive.

And his nz 100, India score in 2021, 158 against England, their all impressive innings. And the dude was a staple role model for fitness?

Dude is a hollow shell now

 

[gibsyhesperis]

Name your Pakistan XI for the next Test series.

That’s a very fair challenge.

I would act a bit orthogonally.
On the basis that trying the current formula isn’t working — Babar captain, then Shan captain, then maybe Saud captain, then who knows, and so on, why not be a bit radical ?

When Australia were getting beaten regularly in the early 1980s and were in the doldrums (by their standards) they chose Allan Border as captain, ultimately paired him with Bobby Simpson and proceeded to pick players based on character and guts.
They accepted they would lose but believed they things would turn around.
They did lose, and heavily, but it culminated with winning the World Cup in 1987 and The Ashes in 1989 — their first victory in a Test series abroad for twenty years — hard to believe.

A similar journey was undertaken by England under Hussain and Fletcher.

So, pick a captain who is untainted by past failures and cliques. Choose a band of young players who will be prepared to go the extra mile and have character and then accept the journey will be tough and losses will occur.
In fact, they will be hammered in some games, tournaments.

Requires three prerequisites (which may be impossible)

1) A captain worth his place in the team of guts, character and technical nous can be found.
2) The fans accept and are tolerant of the fact that things will get worse before they get better
3) An administration (PCB) and government (whoever it may be of any of the numerous bad actors) who will also be patient and supportive.

Just moving the deckchairs on the Titanic is doomed to failure

 

[Hitman]

His troll army on X has been quiet for a while. Their formula to defend their 'King' is to try and put down Kohli.

 

[mominsaigol]

His troll army on X has been quiet for a while. Their formula to defend their 'King' is to try and put down Kohli.

Babar fan crying in the corner: kohli is finished, Babar will be back, his best days are ahead of him

 

[Dr_Bassim]

Name his replacement.

Anyone who can score more than 20 or 30 runs in a match.

Can try Kamran Ghulam or Hurarira or whoever.

Whats the fear?

That his replacement would suck?

Well, then this drama would finally be over and Babar can re-enter the team and not be removed again.

If you want to keep status quo, then sure.

But be prepared to let Babar humiliate you further as you try to salvage the scraps of his tarnished reputation.

 

[Savak]

Pakistan is the best country in the world to be a senior player with a gigantic fan club, gives you unlimited opportunities without performance

 

[Abdullah]

Anyone who can score more than 20 or 30 runs in a match.

Can try Kamran Ghulam or Hurarira or whoever.

Whats the fear?

That his replacement would suck?

Well, then this drama would finally be over and Babar can re-enter the team and not be removed again.

If you want to keep status quo, then sure.

But be prepared to let Babar humiliate you further as you try to salvage the scraps of his tarnished reputation.

Dr Saab, there are other guys who need replacing first. Do that first and in that time we will have also seen what babar has left in the tank. At least he has some kind of record to speak of compared to the others.
It is very easy to sit and talk and say to replace everyone, we will lose anyway. That is now how international sports works. You still need to try and get over the hurdles and be competitive. As a guide, your best players are your best players, and form can be up and down. You don't just make it a merry go around

 

[Dr_Bassim]

Dr Saab, there are other guys who need replacing first. Do that first and in that time we will have also seen what babar has left in the tank. At least he has some kind of record to speak of compared to the others.
It is very easy to sit and talk and say to replace everyone, we will lose anyway. That is now how international sports works. You still need to try and get over the hurdles and be competitive. As a guide, your best players are your best players, and form can be up and down. You don't just make it a merry go around

At what time do you let your best players be accountable?

Is 2 years enough?

Or do they get a free pass forever?

 

[Rana]

https://twitter.com/x/status/600522464423243776

Not sure whether to laugh or cry

2015.

Pure hearted.
Uncorrupted.
Clean slate when it comes to crimes against Pakistan cricket.
Genuinely was happy to see Zimbabwe visit Pakistan

 

[Mamoon]

Anyone who can score more than 20 or 30 runs in a match.

Can try Kamran Ghulam or Hurarira or whoever.

Whats the fear?

That his replacement would suck?

Well, then this drama would finally be over and Babar can re-enter the team and not be removed again.

If you want to keep status quo, then sure.

But be prepared to let Babar humiliate you further as you try to salvage the scraps of his tarnished reputation.

In spite of his poor form for over a year, Babar averages 45. That shows his pedigree, pedigree that Kamran and the other guy that you can’t even spell don’t have.

By all means select them and perhaps they deserve selection but not at the expense of Babar.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is significantly weaker than any Pakistan team with Babar.

 

[Mamoon]

That’s a very fair challenge.

I would act a bit orthogonally.
On the basis that trying the current formula isn’t working — Babar captain, then Shan captain, then maybe Saud captain, then who knows, and so on, why not be a bit radical ?

When Australia were getting beaten regularly in the early 1980s and were in the doldrums (by their standards) they chose Allan Border as captain, ultimately paired him with Bobby Simpson and proceeded to pick players based on character and guts.
They accepted they would lose but believed they things would turn around.
They did lose, and heavily, but it culminated with winning the World Cup in 1987 and The Ashes in 1989 — their first victory in a Test series abroad for twenty years — hard to believe.

A similar journey was undertaken by England under Hussain and Fletcher.

So, pick a captain who is untainted by past failures and cliques. Choose a band of young players who will be prepared to go the extra mile and have character and then accept the journey will be tough and losses will occur.
In fact, they will be hammered in some games, tournaments.

Requires three prerequisites (which may be impossible)

1) A captain worth his place in the team of guts, character and technical nous can be found.
2) The fans accept and are tolerant of the fact that things will get worse before they get better
3) An administration (PCB) and government (whoever it may be of any of the numerous bad actors) who will also be patient and supportive.

Just moving the deckchairs on the Titanic is doomed to failure

Do all of that, but with Babar in the team. Any Pakistan XI without Babar is significantly weaker than any Pakistan XI with Babar.

 

[Josh]

Do all of that, but with Babar in the team. Any Pakistan XI without Babar is significantly weaker than any Pakistan XI with Babar.

Babar needs to rest and work on himself and his technique and come back stronger. He is a fine batsman but not an ATG level as his fans claim him to be.

 

[Ab Fan]

Babar has failed to take his game to next level. He is a Rahane level batsman.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Babar has failed to take his game to next level. He is a Rahane level batsman.

Don't insult Rahane. He played stellar role in few of our overseas wins despite having many mediocre Tests at home.

 

[Mockingbird]

Don't insult Rahane. He played stellar role in few of our overseas wins despite having many mediocre Tests at home.

I agree, Rahane was crucial for our overseas tests for many years. I would compare Babar to Rahul in terms of mental fortitude, but even Rahul has 5 SENA centuries.

 

[RidiculousMan]

I was watching the video of Babar against Australia at the Gaba 2019 Test. When he scored 97.

This interesting stat popped up.

Even though back then Babar was creating his name and place in Test Cricket. He still clearly struggled against the balls coming in.

In Test Cricket bowlers look to shape it away to get a nick. But here was Babar strong because he was so good at driving the ball and knowing that is not in his zone to drive.

I believe the bowlers have now for the past 2-3 years understood this weakness of Babar. They don't try to shape it away as much as they look to get it in to generate a dismissal.

 

[Josh]

I was watching the video of Babar against Australia at the Gaba 2019 Test. When he scored 97.

This interesting stat popped up.
View attachment 146063
Even though back then Babar was creating his name and place in Test Cricket. He still clearly struggled against the balls coming in.

In Test Cricket bowlers look to shape it away to get a nick. But here was Babar strong because he was so good at driving the ball and knowing that is not in his zone to drive.

I believe the bowlers have now for the past 2-3 years understood this weakness of Babar. They don't try to shape it away as much as they look to get it in to generate a dismissal.

Let's hope Blessing Muzarabani isn't lurking around and reading this post.

 

[heddie19]

I agree with you everything except the whole age fudge thing.

Idk if he's 32/33 or 29 as I don't have proof, but 32/33 isn't the end of a cricketer lol. It's a solid age where their likely the most experienced.

But yes Babar’s career is mostly over now. He won't come back

Likh k de sakta hai k Babar's career is over? Bol?

 

[mominsaigol]

Likh k de sakta hai k Babar's career is over? Bol?

It was over in 2022 lol. Rn all we see is a dead corpse being carried unnecessarily

 

[Devadwal]

Last time Babar Azam scored Test 50, Imran Khan was the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

Pakistan should elect Imran Khan as the Prime minister than see how Babar azam will perform

Babar is silently protesting with the bat.

 

[FastBowlingAllrounder]

I was watching the video of Babar against Australia at the Gaba 2019 Test. When he scored 97.

This interesting stat popped up.
View attachment 146063
Even though back then Babar was creating his name and place in Test Cricket. He still clearly struggled against the balls coming in.

In Test Cricket bowlers look to shape it away to get a nick. But here was Babar strong because he was so good at driving the ball and knowing that is not in his zone to drive.

I believe the bowlers have now for the past 2-3 years understood this weakness of Babar. They don't try to shape it away as much as they look to get it in to generate a dismissal.

Yep, Australia blatantly employed that stategy against him in the recent test series and brutally exposed him

Buuuuut, dude’s too stubborn to do anything about an obvious flaw in his technique (among other things) and so, unless he changes, it’ll be another nail in his own coffin.

 

[Mamoon]

Babar needs to rest and work on himself and his technique and come back stronger. He is a fine batsman but not an ATG level as his fans claim him to be.

No, he doesn’t need to rest. You don’t regain your form by resting. Did your “ATG” batsman rest when he averaged 25 in Tests for 3 years? No, he played and eventually came back to form because he is a class player and BCCI knew that resting/dropping him is not the solution.

The only rest he got was when he ran away from Australia after the first Test after his team collapsed to 36 all out and then his team won the series without him playing.

 

[Advaith]

Do all of that, but with Babar in the team. Any Pakistan XI without Babar is significantly weaker than any Pakistan XI with Babar.

Question is any pakistan team which has current Babar vs Pakistan with Babar who was already dropped on behalf of no performance...which one is better for pakistan???

 

[ads101]

Every batsman has technical weaknesses of some sort. I don't believe he is finished and will never recover because of this. It doesn't take the opposition 5 years to work out how to get him out cheaply consistently. I get this argument if he only performed for one year and then is found out, and never does well again (which happens to many of our batsmen). But this wasn't the case with Babar.

I don't think the solution is to drop him from internationals entirely as he's got to get back form in internationals. He'll do well in domestic regardless, he succeeded in last PSL too. I don't think it will help him.

It might be worth dropping him from some formats and not others though so he can concentrate on getting form back in one format first. Is easier than trying to succeed at all 3 again. I can see the merit in that possibly. Not sure I'd do it, but I can see that working possibly. Also why he shouldn't have been given captaincy again, he doesn't need yet another thing to focus on when his form is bad. Make it as easy as possible to regain form.

 

[adi_62941]

I think it is quite common in the entire Akmal family. They all arrived on the scene with a bang, performed well for some time, and then declined to their core.

Babar was overhyped by his PR team and fans. He is a decent batsman in Tests and good in ODIs. His first-class records show that he was an above-average batsman in four-day cricket.

Ricky Ponting was spot on when he said that Babar can be anything, which indicates that this guy has enormous talent and an excellent technique. He should have improved further, combining this with his fitness to excel in international cricket.

Babar always gets his form from ODIs, as he is an excellent batter in that format. But since Pakistan has not been playing many ODIs lately, his form has dipped in Tests as well. I still believe he will end up as Pakistan's most successful batsman if he plays for the next eight years or so, which he can easily do if he takes care of his fitness.

 

[BouncerGuy]

Latest Test batters ranking, Babar declined even more and now he is out of the top 10 and is currently placed at the number 12 spot.

I think that is probably the realistic number for him.

 

[RidiculousMan]

No, he doesn’t need to rest. You don’t regain your form by resting. Did your “ATG” batsman rest when he averaged 25 in Tests for 3 years? No, he played and eventually came back to form because he is a class player and BCCI knew that resting/dropping him is not the solution.

The only rest he got was when he ran away from Australia after the first Test after his team collapsed to 36 all out and then his team won the series without him playing.

I agree. Rest doesn't matter.

He needs to improve his technique and find a way to cope. Ever since he made his debut he has been struggling with the balls coming in. Same reason why he struggles so much against off spin. He had lately develop the mid wicket hoick or slog. Don't know why he doesn't play that often against off spinners. His batting stance allows him to have a strong base and generate enough power to clear the infield everytime.

These days teams have worked out his weakness. In important matches he has been dismissed against balls that come in.

He needs to improve. But he looks too stubborn to do that. Can happen to you when something has been working for you. Although maybe it is the right time to self reflect on your play and make some adjustments. There are plenty of great Pakistani batters whom he can work with. I'm sure they'll be happy to assist Babar. Mohammad Yusuf or Younus Khan can teach him a thing or two.

 

[mominsaigol]

Latest Test batters ranking, Babar declined even more and now he is out of the top 10 and is currently placed at the number 12 spot.

I think that is probably the realistic number for him.

His realistic numbers are with sham at 60-65 atm.

You're telling me that Babar is realistically the 12th best test batsmen in the world? Yei kab hua?

 

[FearlessRoar]

Most 50+ scores in international cricket since 2020:

70 - Babar Azam (173 Inns)
53 - Mohammad Rizwan (159 Inns)
49 - Virat Kohli (147 Inns)
44 - Rohit Sharma (146 Inns)
42 - Joe Root (126 Inns)
41 - David Warner (131 Inns)

 

[Hitman]

Most 50+ scores in international cricket since 2020:

70 - Babar Azam (173 Inns)
53 - Mohammad Rizwan (159 Inns)
49 - Virat Kohli (147 Inns)
44 - Rohit Sharma (146 Inns)
42 - Joe Root (126 Inns)
41 - David Warner (131 Inns)

Babar fans should be so proud at that. Please forward it to the Pakistan team. They might as well celebrate it by cutting a cake.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Too much of obscure stats of usually get shared whenever Babar fails. "Babar scored more runs on a Friday than anyone else" . They just check for stats that Kohli does not have and share it. It was fun for them as long as he was able to statpad against B string C string teams. Now they don't even have to stat to hide behind. Biggest accolade for a player is how opposition views you. How opposition fans view you. He never had that aura to be feared by opposition.

 

[Josh]

No, he doesn’t need to rest. You don’t regain your form by resting. Did your “ATG” batsman rest when he averaged 25 in Tests for 3 years? No, he played and eventually came back to form because he is a class player and BCCI knew that resting/dropping him is not the solution.

The only rest he got was when he ran away from Australia after the first Test after his team collapsed to 36 all out and then his team won the series without him playing.

Kohli didn't touch bat for a month. He also worked on his fitness. Do you see a fitness improvement in Babar after a break of more than 2 months? Virat was already a legend with 70 centuries when he got into a lean patch. He was also not stat padding versus poor teams. The people keeping Babar in team are doing more harm than good. Sometimes dropping or resting a player will generate much more energetic response and come back from the player and he will not take anything for granted.

 

[Mamoon]

Kohli didn't touch bat for a month. He also worked on his fitness. Do you see a fitness improvement in Babar after a break of more than 2 months? Virat was already a legend with 70 centuries when he got into a lean patch. He was also not stat padding versus poor teams. The people keeping Babar in team are doing more harm than good. Sometimes dropping or resting a player will generate much more energetic response and come back from the player and he will not take anything for granted.

There is nothing wrong with Babar’s fitness. He runs well, his fielding is good. He doesn’t get injured.

People need to understand that as a cricketer, you are not required to have a six pack and hit the gym 24/7. If Kohli does it, good for him. It is a lifestyle choice for him.

It is not a requirement to be a successful cricketer. Fitness is an issue if you are like Azam Khan or if you get injured frequently.

Didn’t touch bat for a month? What does that even mean - that is very common for players during off season. The reality is that Kohli was never dropped due to poor form and that applies to Babar as well, because Babar is by far Pakistan’s most accomplished batsman and he is only 29/30, and every match that he misses because a what if moment for Pakistan because Babar will always be more likely to score, or to come back to form, compared to a domestic player who doesn’t have his ceiling in the first place.

Every batsman has done stat padding vs weak teams. That is the nature of this sport. Kohli is no different. Mr ATG averages 33 and 34 over 20 Tests in England and New Zealand.

Every batsman scores more runs vs weaker teams. This is how it is. There is absolutely no reason for holding Babar to a different standard than every batsman in history.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is weaker than any Pakistan team with him. Pakistan is already going through a talent crisis. The last thing it can afford is to drop its best batsman by far. Instead, they have to back him to regain his form especially when he is only 29/30 and it is an age where most batsmen hit their peak.

There isn’t a single batsman in Pakistan who is remotely capable of scoring all the runs that Babar has in his career. He has nearly 14k runs @45+ with 31 tons across format. No one else in Pakistan is good enough to replicate this.

 

[mesmerizer85]

There is nothing wrong with Babar’s fitness. He runs well, his fielding is good. He doesn’t get injured.

People need to understand that as a cricketer, you are not required to have a six pack and hit the gym 24/7. If Kohli does it, good for him. It is a lifestyle choice for him.

It is not a requirement to be a successful cricketer. Fitness is an issue if you are like Azam Khan or if you get injured frequently.

Didn’t touch bat for a month? What does that even mean - that is very common for players during off season. The reality is that Kohli was never dropped due to poor form and that applies to Babar as well, because Babar is by far Pakistan’s most accomplished batsman and he is only 29/30, and every match that he misses because a what if moment for Pakistan because Babar will always be more likely to score, or to come back to form, compared to a domestic player who doesn’t have his ceiling in the first place.

Every batsman has done stat padding vs weak teams. That is the nature of this sport. Kohli is no different. Mr ATG averages 33 and 34 over 20 Tests in England and New Zealand.

Every batsman scores more runs vs weaker teams. This is how it is. There is absolutely no reason for holding Babar to a different standard than every batsman in history.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is weaker than any Pakistan team with him. Pakistan is already going through a talent crisis. The last thing it can afford is to drop its best batsman by far. Instead, they have to back him to regain his form especially when he is only 29/30 and it is an age where most batsmen hit their peak.

There isn’t a single batsman in Pakistan who is remotely capable of scoring all the runs that Babar has in his career. He has nearly 14k runs @45+ with 31 tons across format. No one else in Pakistan is good enough to replicate this.

So Mamoon are you saying we cannot find a player like him or maybe the next Zaheer Abbas or Miandad? How would we know this until new players are not trialed or groomed? I think Babar was brought into the team quite early while he was young. Why cannot we do the same for lets say a Huraira or Kamran Ghulam. Thing is we have been heavily reliant on him as our saviour all this while. Why could not PCB bring more such batsmen into the team to have a proper balance?

 

[sweep_shot]

I personally believe Babar should be dropped from Test and T20. But, he can stay in ODI team.

 

[mesmerizer85]

So Mamoon are you saying we cannot find a player like him or maybe the next Zaheer Abbas or Miandad? How would we know this until new players are not trialed or groomed? I think Babar was brought into the team quite early while he was young. Why cannot we do the same for lets say a Huraira or Kamran Ghulam. Thing is we have been heavily reliant on him as our saviour all this while. Why could not PCB bring more such batsmen into the team to have a proper balance?

That way there would a healthy competition between him and others, and we would have better batsmen unlike what we have at our disposal. By simply hyping him to the moon I think hes been made the "Untouchable" by PCB

 

[NishanKonar]

There is nothing wrong with Babar’s fitness. He runs well, his fielding is good. He doesn’t get injured.

People need to understand that as a cricketer, you are not required to have a six pack and hit the gym 24/7. If Kohli does it, good for him. It is a lifestyle choice for him.

It is not a requirement to be a successful cricketer. Fitness is an issue if you are like Azam Khan or if you get injured frequently.

Didn’t touch bat for a month? What does that even mean - that is very common for players during off season. The reality is that Kohli was never dropped due to poor form and that applies to Babar as well, because Babar is by far Pakistan’s most accomplished batsman and he is only 29/30, and every match that he misses because a what if moment for Pakistan because Babar will always be more likely to score, or to come back to form, compared to a domestic player who doesn’t have his ceiling in the first place.

Every batsman has done stat padding vs weak teams. That is the nature of this sport. Kohli is no different. Mr ATG averages 33 and 34 over 20 Tests in England and New Zealand.

Every batsman scores more runs vs weaker teams. This is how it is. There is absolutely no reason for holding Babar to a different standard than every batsman in history.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is weaker than any Pakistan team with him. Pakistan is already going through a talent crisis. The last thing it can afford is to drop its best batsman by far. Instead, they have to back him to regain his form especially when he is only 29/30 and it is an age where most batsmen hit their peak.

There isn’t a single batsman in Pakistan who is remotely capable of scoring all the runs that Babar has in his career. He has nearly 14k runs @45+ with 31 tons across format. No one else in Pakistan is good enough to replicate this.

This actually the crux of the problem. Many Pakistanis still believe Babar is good as Kohli. So if Kohli was not dropped , so why should Babar be dropped.

Of course u can say Kohli had 7-8 good years when he dominated world cricket while Babar had like 2 good years before he hit a rough patch. But that wud Greek & Hebrew to most Pakistani fans. Also Kohli did not get a 100 but he was regularly getting 50s , Babar on the other hand has not got a test 50 for 2 years now

I have said this many times - the way Pakistani fans overhype their players is extremely bizarre & delusional

 

[Rana]

I personally believe Babar should be dropped from Test and T20. But, he can stay in ODI team.

He should stay in the only format that will probably go extinct soon?

 

[mominsaigol]

He should stay in the only format that will probably go extinct soon?

Odi isn't going anywhere fam. Possible hi nahi hai.

But I do think changes will eventually be made to it.

Maybe a 40 over permanent format post 2027

 

[shaz619]

Babar Azam should apply to the job centre

 

[Cricket Warrior]

I personally believe Babar should be dropped from Test and T20. But, he can stay in ODI team.

yeah atleast no point picking him for Test cricket... he is in horrible form!

 

[Rana]

Babar Azam should apply to the job centre

Manager at Primark

 

[jnaveen1980]

Babar Azam should apply to the job centre

He is a super model

https://twitter.com/x/status/1156192548572016641

 

[mesmerizer85]

That way there would a healthy competition between him and others, and we would have better batsmen unlike what we have at our disposal. By simply hyping him to the moon I think hes been made the "Untouchable" by PCB

Take a look at how India were able to beat Aus in Gabba without Kohli (Gill,pant, pujara) all stepped up.

Do you think PCB missed a trick here by not developing an all member strong team and just focusing on blue eyed boy Bobzy as the only one. He needs to get sidelined for a few matches so others can shine and show their worth. How did we lose to Bangladesh even with him being in the team. Once he realizes his position can be questioned will he start taking things seriously.

 

[Dr_Bassim]

There is nothing wrong with Babar’s fitness. He runs well, his fielding is good. He doesn’t get injured.

People need to understand that as a cricketer, you are not required to have a six pack and hit the gym 24/7. If Kohli does it, good for him. It is a lifestyle choice for him.

It is not a requirement to be a successful cricketer. Fitness is an issue if you are like Azam Khan or if you get injured frequently.

Didn’t touch bat for a month? What does that even mean - that is very common for players during off season. The reality is that Kohli was never dropped due to poor form and that applies to Babar as well, because Babar is by far Pakistan’s most accomplished batsman and he is only 29/30, and every match that he misses because a what if moment for Pakistan because Babar will always be more likely to score, or to come back to form, compared to a domestic player who doesn’t have his ceiling in the first place.

Every batsman has done stat padding vs weak teams. That is the nature of this sport. Kohli is no different. Mr ATG averages 33 and 34 over 20 Tests in England and New Zealand.

Every batsman scores more runs vs weaker teams. This is how it is. There is absolutely no reason for holding Babar to a different standard than every batsman in history.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is weaker than any Pakistan team with him. Pakistan is already going through a talent crisis. The last thing it can afford is to drop its best batsman by far. Instead, they have to back him to regain his form especially when he is only 29/30 and it is an age where most batsmen hit their peak.

There isn’t a single batsman in Pakistan who is remotely capable of scoring all the runs that Babar has in his career. He has nearly 14k runs @45+ with 31 tons across format. No one else in Pakistan is good enough to replicate this.

Nothing wrong with Babar at all.

Except he can't score.

And when he does, it's inconsequential.

 

[usman.sandhu]

One of Babar's biggest issue right now is that he has put on a lot of weight, has a proper belly. As a result, his reflexes have slowed down massively.

He is headstrong so isn't willing to accept this and is definitely shying away from putting in the work.

A comeback would be very difficult if he cannot work on his fitness..

In my opinion, he needs to be sent back to domestic cricket, work on his fitness and technique and earn his place back...

 

[usman.sandhu]

There is nothing wrong with Babar’s fitness. He runs well, his fielding is good. He doesn’t get injured.

People need to understand that as a cricketer, you are not required to have a six pack and hit the gym 24/7. If Kohli does it, good for him. It is a lifestyle choice for him.

It is not a requirement to be a successful cricketer. Fitness is an issue if you are like Azam Khan or if you get injured frequently.

Didn’t touch bat for a month? What does that even mean - that is very common for players during off season. The reality is that Kohli was never dropped due to poor form and that applies to Babar as well, because Babar is by far Pakistan’s most accomplished batsman and he is only 29/30, and every match that he misses because a what if moment for Pakistan because Babar will always be more likely to score, or to come back to form, compared to a domestic player who doesn’t have his ceiling in the first place.

Every batsman has done stat padding vs weak teams. That is the nature of this sport. Kohli is no different. Mr ATG averages 33 and 34 over 20 Tests in England and New Zealand.

Every batsman scores more runs vs weaker teams. This is how it is. There is absolutely no reason for holding Babar to a different standard than every batsman in history.

Any Pakistan team without Babar is weaker than any Pakistan team with him. Pakistan is already going through a talent crisis. The last thing it can afford is to drop its best batsman by far. Instead, they have to back him to regain his form especially when he is only 29/30 and it is an age where most batsmen hit their peak.

There isn’t a single batsman in Pakistan who is remotely capable of scoring all the runs that Babar has in his career. He has nearly 14k runs @45+ with 31 tons across format. No one else in Pakistan is good enough to replicate this.

He has put on a lot of weight, is much heavier than he used to be.. His reflexes have slowed down considerably...

Pretty evident when he drops catches and fends away at wide balls.. cannot move his arms and legs in time...

He seriously needs to fix this if he is to make a come back...

 

[hoshiarpurexpress]

Done and dusted. Greed caused his downfall. Needs to go back to drawing board and rediscover himself.

 

[Dr_Bassim]

What do you make of Babar being terrible for last 2 years?

Ignore it and move on?

 

[Devadwal]

Is Babar peak yet to comes or his best days are behind him .

 

[BouncerGuy]

Babar has lost his confidence and his form. He needs to go back to domestic especially first-class cricket and work on his technique. In ODIS he will do a fine job but his days in tests and T20s are over.

 

[Buffet]

He was never that great but also not as bad as many posters are projecting here.

Surely , playing poorly right now. Playing some domestic can help. Needs one big score to get some confidence back in international. PR to project him as some great batsman needs to stop. He a decent batsman and going through a bad phase.

 

[shaz619]

He is a super model

https://twitter.com/x/status/1156192548572016641

Somewhere Ali is rolling in his grave

 

[shaz619]

Nothing wrong with Babar at all.

Except he can't score.

And when he does, it's inconsequential.

It’s sad isn’t it, even Mr. English has scored more runs then our Sooperstar Babar in the last two test series

 

[Savak]

Babar had a two and a half month gap bw the T20 WC and the first test against Bangladesh. No evidence he did any serious technical work on his batting, fitness regime during this gap to get himself ready for the home test season.

He is only himself responsible for his rapid decline. The evidence is very clear his work ethic and drive that he enjoyed early on in his career from 2016 to 2021 has not been the same.

 

[Mamoon]

He has put on a lot of weight, is much heavier than he used to be.. His reflexes have slowed down considerably...

Pretty evident when he drops catches and fends away at wide balls.. cannot move his arms and legs in time...

He seriously needs to fix this if he is to make a come back...

None of that has happened. He is just in poor form. Kohli couldn’t buy a run for 2 years and he had peak fitness.

People come up with all sorts of theories and start overthinking whenever someone is not playing well.

He has lost hunger, he is losing it, he has been found out, his attitude is bad etc. how about he is just not playing well.

 

[Mamoon]

Nothing wrong with Babar at all.

Except he can't score.

And when he does, it's inconsequential.

no one can decide the consequentiality of performances. It is a subjective hot take fueled by bias and agenda.

 

[mominsaigol]

no one can decide the consequentiality of performances. It is a subjective hot take fueled by bias and agenda.

People were way too harsh on bobby from 2016-2021. He was scoring and was our best no 3. Those who hated him at the time were just against him for the sake of it. For example alot of people claimed 2020 t20 mishaps on him not realising he and fakhar use to open and were the combo of the no 1 ranked t20 side . It was rizwan who entered, bobby didn't replace anyone.

And in 2021 his performance was good. Yes he was a soft scorer and accumulator however theirs no denying scoring 3 back to back 100's 2x regardless of opposition is extremely impressive.

However people have every right to complain about him from 2022 until now. Also you're ignoring the fact that kohli never declined in fitness, never developed a dad bod, and he had 2 atg innings against afghanistan and pakistan in t20, and was top scorer of 2023 wc. He only had a poor 2021 and a poor test outing from 3 years.

He wasn't bad in every format. Babar had been awful in t20 and awful in test. He's been okay in odi in 2023 though, had 2 centuries, a couple of 50's here and their. But the justification of kicking him out of t20 and test is valid.

He's playing worse then Shan masood. Does that mean he's worse then Shan? Ofcourse not, His peak > Shan easily but atm he's performing worse them everyone except his copycat Abdullah shafiq.

 

[Mamoon]

This actually the crux of the problem. Many Pakistanis still believe Babar is good as Kohli. So if Kohli was not dropped , so why should Babar be dropped

You need to understand that the relative importance that Babar has for Pakistan is probably greater than the relative importance that Kohli has for India.

This is not because Babar is as good as Kohli. He isn’t, and he doesn’t need to be, but it is because there is a world of difference between the two countries when it comes to batting resources and depth.

There are probably a dozen batsman in India right now who are nowhere close to getting picked but if they were in Pakistan, they would be amongst the best batsmen in team.

Someone like Masood who is currently captaining Pakistan and the first choice #3 would probably not even get picked in a Ranji team.

Players like Saim Ayub can be found in every nook and corner of India but he is supposedly the next big thing in Pakistan.

Prithvi Shaw might never play for India again but he is miles better than any Pakistan batsman currently playing minus Babar.

Pakistan is already scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to batting. Batting resources for Pakistan is what fast bowling resources used to be for India until the last few years. The lack of talent is evident.

There is absolutely no batsman in Pakistan right now who is at Babar’s level and can do what Babar did during his 2016-2021 run, so the last thing Pakistan can afford is to drop him at an age where most batsmen hit is peak.

It is very common for batsmen to go through such patches in their career, but you have to back Babar to get back to scoring heaps of runs very very soon because he is years away from the stage where he would start to decline.

Of course u can say Kohli had 7-8 good years when he dominated world cricket while Babar had like 2 good years before he hit a rough patch. But that wud Greek & Hebrew to most Pakistani fans. Also Kohli did not get a 100 but he was regularly getting 50s , Babar on the other hand has not got a test 50 for 2 years now

From 2020-2022, Kohli played 36 Test innings at an average of 26 with 0 centuries and 6 half-centuries.

6 fifties in 36 innings is not the definition of regularly getting fifties. He was a complete failure in that period and in spite of his past laurels, he was costing India in Test cricket in that period and there were multiple domestic batsmen who would have been more prolific than him in that period but India didn’t drop him because they knew that his peak level is way higher than anyone who would replace him, so they would back him to regain his form rather than replace him with someone who won’t have his ability in the first place.

Same applies to Babar. There is absolutely no point in replacing him with someone inferior even though that someone inferior might be in better scoring form at this moment in time, but the sensible approach is to persist with someone who has the most potential amongst all the batsmen you have produced in the last 20 years.

I have said this many times - the way Pakistani fans overhype their players is extremely bizarre & delusional

This is a subcontinent problem. Pakistani fans are delusional but Indian fans are not far behind either. Your cricket team has achieved the bare minimum in spite of holding the game by the balls says a lot about Indian cricket. The fact that you couldn’t even win the 2023 World Cup after controlling each and every aspect of that World Cup and still treat your underachieving players like demigods says it all.

 

[Mamoon]

So Mamoon are you saying we cannot find a player like him or maybe the next Zaheer Abbas or Miandad? How would we know this until new players are not trialed or groomed? I think Babar was brought into the team quite early while he was young. Why cannot we do the same for lets say a Huraira or Kamran Ghulam. Thing is we have been heavily reliant on him as our saviour all this while. Why could not PCB bring more such batsmen into the team to have a proper balance?

When we produce another batting talent like Zaheer, Miandad, Inzamam, Yousuf and Babar, we would know. In the age of social media, nothing is hidden and a batsmen like them would make waves and make his presence feel in domestic cricket.

The likes of Ghulam and Huraira are not at that level. They are the flavor of the month but once you bring them to the team, they will get exposed like Saim Ayub and Shafique who were also hyped to the moon.

Keen followers of Pakistan cricket knew about Babar since he was 13. In fact, his name was talked about even more ardently than that of Umar Akmal who was several years ahead of him. This is because Babar had something special that others did not, and Pakistan has not produced another batsman like him since.

So I would trust him to regain his form when he is only 29/30 rather than replace him with someone with less potential.

 

[Katwalindian]

When we produce another batting talent like Zaheer, Miandad, Inzamam, Yousuf and Babar, we would know. In the age of social media, nothing is hidden and a batsmen like them would make waves and make his presence feel in domestic cricket.

The likes of Ghulam and Huraira are not at that level. They are the flavor of the month but once you bring them to the team, they will get exposed like Saim Ayub and Shafique who were also hyped to the moon.

Keen followers of Pakistan cricket knew about Babar since he was 13. In fact, his name was talked about even more ardently than that of Umar Akmal who was several years ahead of him. This is because Babar had something special that others did not, and Pakistan has not produced another batsman like him since.

So I would trust him to regain his form when he is only 29/30 rather than replace him with someone with less potential.

When we produce another batting talent like Zaheer, Miandad, Inzamam, Yousuf and Babar, we would know. In the age of social media, nothing is hidden and a batsmen like them would make waves and make his presence feel in domestic cricket.

The likes of Ghulam and Huraira are not at that level. They are the flavor of the month but once you bring them to the team, they will get exposed like Saim Ayub and Shafique who were also hyped to the moon.

Keen followers of Pakistan cricket knew about Babar since he was 13. In fact, his name was talked about even more ardently than that of Umar Akmal who was several years ahead of him. This is because Babar had something special that others did not, and Pakistan has not produced another batsman like him since.

So I would trust him to regain his form when he is only 29/30 rather than replace him with someone with less potential.

Babar azam in t20s also?